Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky revealed on Saturday what kind of events might force his country to withdraw from peace negotiations with Moscow.
During a press conference held at one of Kiev’s metro stations amid the ongoing Russian offensive in Ukraine, Zelensky was asked how Kiev would respond to potential independence referendums in the territories controlled by Russian forces. The president admitted that it would force him to stop any talks with Moscow.
“If our people are destroyed in Mariupol, if a referendum, a pseudo-referendum, is announced in any new pseudo-republics of Ukraine, Ukraine will withdraw from any negotiations process,” Zelensky said.
Two days ago, Moscow announced the capture of Mariupol. However, President Vladimir Putin called off the assault on the Azovstal factory, which remains the last holdout of Ukrainian forces, including the fighters of the neo-Nazi Azov regiment, in the strategic port city. Russian troops should “seal the area so that a fly cannot get through,” Putin instead ordered. Zelensky, meanwhile, admitted that at the moment Ukraine is not able to recapture Mariupol militarily and that the holed-up fighters there are aware of that.